


Taming of Fear

by orphan_account



Category: Thor (Movies) RPF
Genre: Drabble, Gen, Handler!Tom, Midnight drabbles, Werelion!Chris
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-11
Updated: 2013-02-11
Packaged: 2017-11-28 22:32:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,321
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/679599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tom, a handler, and his werelion Chris educate school children at the London Zoo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Taming of Fear

"Good morning, everyone!" 

This group is smaller than normal. Only about ten pairs of shinning, bright eyes follow Tom as he strolls across the room. The children respond just as he expects, no matter their quantity. 

"GOOD MORNING!" 

Tom smiles at the high voices shouting back. They sound excited, thrilled to be there. He's happy, too. 

"My name is Tom, and I'm here to talk to you about werelions. Does anyone know what a werelion is?" 

A few small hands shoot up. Tom picks a little Asian girl near the front. 

"Were.... werelions are magic!" 

Tom nods, giddy with anticipation. "Anyone else?"

A tall boy with freckles: "Werelions looks like lions, but they're people, too."

"This is true. Can the lions speak like people, though?" 

A chorus of "nos" and a collective shaking of heads reply. 

Tom crouches in front of the small children sitting closest to him. "Have any of you," he whispers, " _seen_ a werelion?" 

They stare, leaning forward, shaking their heads again. Everyone's holding their breath. Rubbing his hands together, Tom asks with a smirk, "Would you like to?" 

The children erupt into a frenzy, shoving and screaming. Of course they want to see one, he _is_ the current attraction for the London Zoo. They scream "yes" and "where" and "I WANNA SEE IT!" all while shuffling and bumping elbows. Tom giggles and springs back onto his feet. 

"Well, you're in luck, children! I just so happen to be best friends with a werelion! BUT!" his sudden change in tone quiets the little ones. 

Swooping down dramatically, Tom dodges a glance around the room before murmuring, "If I show him to you, you must promise to pet him gently."

They nod.

"And to not pull on his ears and tail." 

They nod still. 

"And please, dearest darlings, you must promise to not scream." 

Thankfully, they nod with more gusto, but remain silent. 

Grinning, Tom jumps back, yelling, "Excillent!" and walks behind a curtain to where said werelion friend waits. 

If lions could grin, Tom is sure his lion would be split from ear to ear. The theatrics, the build up were all his part. The children were here for a lion, not a bean pole teasing them with the exotic. 

Kneeling before the white maned beast, Tom pets the creature lovingly. "They're so excited to see you! Remember, be gentle. They mean you no harm." 

The big cat huffs in his face, and Tom leads him back to the children. 

"Children, allow me to introduce my best friend, Chris the Werelion!" 

Thankfully, mercifully, no one screams like they do in the large groups. Only a few sounds escape the clutch of children, but none too startling. Tom leads Chris to the centre of the room, where all the kids can see him. He is truly magnificent, clean white coat gleaming in the light, his mane full and fluffy. He's larger than an African lion, but not monstrously so. Which slightly disappoints some of the children. They had in mind he'd be taller than Tom. This is not true, although Chris' head can easily butt against Tom's chest, without any stretching or effort. 

Tom lowers himself to the floor, sitting with his long legs crossed. Chris carefully follows him, lying on his side with his back facing Tom. The werelion watches the children closely, although he doesn't feel concerned in the least. His whole body shifts in a sigh as Tom rests a hand in his mane. Any second now, the loon will invite the little things for a closer look, offering to let them pet him. 

"Now!" Tom exclaims, "would anyone like to come over and sit with us? Anyone?"

Chris hopes no one comes. But, inevitably, there's always one brave child who comes over, which _of course_ encourages the rest of them. Chris rolls his eyes when one stands. Naturally. 

Tom reaches his free hand out to the little Asian girl who spoke earlier. She grabs it and sits in front of Tom's feet, close to Chris' head. 

"His name is Chris. If you're nice, he'll let you pet him. Will you say hi?" 

She watches him, first. Chris stares for only a moment. He dismisses the child, though, and turns his head away. Tom already warned them about his ears, maybe they listened. Chris closes his eyes just before the little girl touches his mane. 

And just as he predicted, once the children realise he won't attack, they all scramble to pet him. And just like always, he dozes off to the sound of Tom's soothing voice, educating them on his history. 

"I met Chris shortly after I graduated university. I found, or rather he found me, in the Outback of Australia. I was on a tour when the vehicle broke down in the desert, but he found us and led us back to town. Ever since, we've..." 

- 

It's hours later when Tom and Chris finally return home. Tom's exhausted and darts into the shower as soon as they enter the flat. He's desperate to wash the day away, to relax in a cascade of steaming relief. And it feels _amazing_. 

It's only once the water runs cold that he finally leaves the sanctuary. Towelled off and in a fresh set of pyjamas, Tom leaps and bounces onto his bed. Burying his head in a pillow, Tom groans. It was such a fantastic day at the zoo, one of the best, actually. Tiring, but excellent. 

The bed shutters and a soft growl announces Chris' presence. Lifting his head just a bit, Tom peers through an eye at the fluffy head. Chris is hiding his head below the edge of the bed. He looks up just in time to see Tom's eye, and they flinch back down together. Giggling, Tom rolls onto his side and waits for Chris to reappear. The lion sits up and watches his handler back, waiting. He always wins. 

With a mock-pout, Tom sighs and concedes defeat. "Alright, alright, come here." 

The change is so fast Tom doesn't bother watching it anymore. Suddenly, he's bombarded with muscled arms snatching him up and wet kisses on his face. Sputtering, Tom leans his head away from the onslaught. 

"Gently, Chris, easy now. Settle down!" 

Chris stops and stares, faking a confused look. Tom sees through the charade. He leans back in and kisses Chris on the nose. "You were wonderful today, so calm around everyone. I'm so proud." 

If there were animal ears on Chris' head, they'd probably twitch along with a long tail. He's so pleased to hear Tom's words than he licks the human on the cheek, forgetting to kiss him instead. 

"Oi, what did I say about that?" 

Chris grins lopsided and darts a quick kiss to the offended cheek. He shuffles down the bed and stretches out so that Tom can hold him, run long fingers through his hair. It's a pretty blond colour, darker in the winter. It doesn't explain why Chris is a white lion, a mystery they never figured out. Tom doesn't thinks about it anymore, just happy to be with him. Happy to change the attitude and the fear surrounding magical beasts like him. 

Curling around Chris' head, Tom breathes in the smell of him. He's become used to the heavy, male scent that naturally surrounds Chris. It bothered him before, but now it only brings him comfort. Too many things bothered him about Chris when they first met: how wild he was, not knowing his own strength. Tom has a scar on his thigh that perfectly matches the werelion's front claws. Chris often falls asleep with a hand covering the mark, just out of habit. So many things have happened since then and now, though. They have each other. This is safe. 

Yawning, Tom pulls back a bit. Chris fell asleep already. Kissing the werelion's brow, Tom shifts around him and whispers, "Good night, my darling."

**Author's Note:**

> I never think of titles until this place forces me to make one. I may write other werelion stories later. Maybe (read probably not). This was going to have smut in it.... But, the tone ended up going in a different direction. But you never know, I could write more. I'd honestly like to write them meeting, the events that caused Tom's scar, etc~
> 
> IF you are reading my story UA, you'll be please to know that it is not abandoned. The muse for that story was kidnapped or lost under a bed, something like that. We're still writing it...
> 
> Thank you for any kudos/bookmarks/comments~


End file.
